From CUBS to Cass: Building a Business School Brand

1
From CUBS to Cass Building a Business School
Brand
2
Agenda

• Context
• The Impetus for Change
• The first 6 months
• Where we are now
• Highlight areas
• The Team and Structure
• Media Relations
• Corporate Communications Service
• Employee Communications
• Q and A

3
Context

• Rebrand activity a good start - awareness of
  School and new name still weak
• Programme marketing and recruitment strong
  synergies lacking
• Corporate collateral, merchandise, brand
  messaging, elevator pitch etc. old, competitive
  or non-existent
• No tracking of media success or proactive press
  outreach - responding to 2 of press enquiries,
  limited spokespeople
• No coherent events programme

4
Context continued

• No employee communications programme
• No content plan for web
• Greater opportunities for partnerships /
  alliances with third parties
• Weak visual identity and tensions with central
  services
• Marketing and Communications simply not on the
  corporate agenda

5
The impetus for change

• New Dean and Senior Management Team
  restructures begun
• Increasingly competitive market
• Increasingly stiff University targets
• New name and lack of differentiation impacting
  recruitment
• The new building
• Refocus on marketing and communications

6
Broad Objectives

• Position Cass Business School as a world-class
  business school in all communications - external
  and internal
• Increase awareness of Cass Business School
  amongst stakeholder groups
• Improve internal communications within the School

7
Quick wins first 6 months

• Team restructure the right people
• Formation of VMG
• Events programme put in place
• Queens visit as springboard for employee
  communications
• Brand work begun
• News on the web
• Proactive press outreach begun media training
• Budget secured for next FY
• Good communication and partnership with central
  University
• Board level support

8
2 years on

• Board level prioritisation
• The Best of Both Worlds
• Huge media success
• 150 events per year
• Collateral and merchandise in place
• Co-ordinated activity across programmes
• Employee communications plan in place
• Web site overhauled
• Visual identity debate begun
• Cradle to grave marketing begun

9
So how did we do it?

• For todays presentation focus on
• The Team
• Media Relations
• Corporate Communications Service
• Employee communications

10
The Team

• The right people
• Best of both worlds
• VMG
• Shared resource, knowledge, planning
• Drive school-wide projects
• Diverse backgrounds
• A service and customer-led culture
• Board level representation

11
Structure
Undergraduate Marketing Manager
MBA Marketing Manager
MSc Marketing Manager
12
Media relations

• Dedicated press office function and measurement
• Business education and research
• Thought leadership themes
• PR Heroes a service to academics
• Training and internal recognition
• External visibility metric in appraisal
• Domestic then international
• Beyond the FT

13
Corporate Communications a service

• Understanding of academic pressures
• Flier and brochure production
• Web content
• Direct mail support
• Event logistics and speakers
• Sponsorship
• Internal communications
• Leg-work, leg-work, leg-work

14
Employee communications

• ESSENTIAL
• Shared ownership
• Watch your language
• IiP (June 2004)
• MORI (December 2004)
• If it aint broke
• and something new
• Feedback loop
• Wider University important

15
Whats next?

• Proactive international media relations
• Genuine cradle to grave marketing
• Clearer brand definition corporate and
  programmes
• The Battle for Visual Identity
• The Customer Experience
• MEASUREMENT
• Survival of the Fittest

16
Q and A